The use of immobilizer devices to prevent the unauthorized movement of automobiles, aircraft and other wheeled vehicles is well known. Immobilizer devices are designed to prevent theft, ensure the payment of parking fines, or prevent travel during storms for aircraft. Vehicle immobilizer devices are widely used by law enforcement personnel, parking attendants, city governments, and individuals concerned with the theft of vehicles. Unfortunately, the vehicle immobilizer devices currently known in the art are difficult to install, may cause vehicle damage, are prone to being removed by unauthorized personnel, and are not versatile for use on a variety of vehicles and wheel assemblies.
One problem associated with many vehicle immobilizer designs is the ease of which they can be removed by irate vehicle owners or thieves. This ease of removal is often attributed to inadequate contact between the immobilizer and the vehicle wheel assembly. Specifically, clamshell designs simply clamp into place, or other designs have inner fingers contact select portions of the vehicle wheel assembly.
As used herein, the term “vehicle wheel assembly” is generally defined as a vehicle wheel with or without a hubcap, an interconnected tire, a brake mechanism, a wheel rim, and in some vehicle designs, tie rods that are employed for support and/or steering purposes. The brake mechanism may further include a drum or disk brake with, or without, a brake backing plate. Without adequate points of contact, the immobilizer device may be pried, cut and/or pulled off the vehicle. For example, immobilizer disengagement may be achieved by a release of tire pressure, thereby altering the wheel assembly/immobilizer interface and allowing the device to be removed from the wheel assembly. Devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. RE024,712 to Maruggand and U.S. Pat. No. 2,960,857 to Winter, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, both employ only three points of engagement on the vehicle wheel assembly, which is generally insufficient to prevent unauthorized removal.
Another problem associated with many types of vehicle immobilizer devices is the difficulty associated with installation and removal. This is generally due to the device's weight and the fact that the inner and outer arm assemblies that engage the wheel assembly must be precisely positioned in a very limited space. Thus, proper installation of the device is time consuming and often performed improperly, resulting in vehicle wheel assembly damage or easier unauthorized removal. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,048, to Beavers et al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, teaches a wheel immobilizer that includes an inner arm and stopping member that are adapted to selectively interconnect to a wheel and a brake backing plate.
In order to ensure proper placement, a user must physically reach in between the wheel and the brake backing plate to feel where a wheel lip is located in order to properly align the stopping member prior to the final installation step of tightening a locking bolt.
Yet another problem associated with many types of vehicle immobilizer devices is damage to the vehicle inner wheel, outer wheel, wheel rims, hubcaps and/or braking mechanisms that may occur during installation. The damage to the hubcap and or outer wheel rim is the result of force and associated abrasion from a rigid metallic plate or arm assembly that is pressed against the hubcap or outer wheel. Any prying or movement of the arm assembly that may often occur during installation or attempts to forcibly remove the immobilizer device from the vehicle will permanently scratch and/or dent the hubcap or outer wheel. The outer and inner wheel rims may also be damaged by many types of vehicle immobilizer devices as a result of the rigid, non-moving rim jaws that engage the inner or outer rim, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,960,857 to Winter, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Any prying of the vehicle immobilizer device may result in the rims becoming bent or scratched. Furthermore, since rim jaws are not capable of moving in a longitudinal and/or horizontal direction, the vehicle immobilizer device cannot be properly fitted to numerous types and sizes of wheel assemblies, thus resulting in inadequate installation.
Another problem associated with many vehicle immobilizer devices is a lack of versatility for use on a variety of models of wheel assemblies and automobiles. More specifically, even for a certain size or model of vehicle, many immobilizer devices cannot be used interchangeably on both vehicle sides. Thus, installers must have numerous models of immobilizer devices in stock for a variety of vehicles rather than utilize a versatile, universal immobilizer device capable of use on a variety of vehicles and wheel assemblies.